Starving
by PrairieLily
Summary: The team must figure out why a young female Navy Lieutenant has died. PreHiatus, or PostHiatus if Gibbs comes back. 9 chapters, 9 of 9 posted COMPLETE. General ensemble case fic with McAbby implied and Palmer Ziva flirting but not really shipped.
1. A Lonely Death

**Title: Starving**

**Disclaimer**: Gibbs, Tim, Tony, Abby, Ziva, Ducky and Jimmy are not my characters. counts fingers and thinks The others are mine. No infringement intended.

**Pairings**: Implied McAbby and the most subtle of hints at Ziva/Jimmy (mostly "Zimmy" flirting, LOL!)

**Rating**: T

**Summary**: The team must figure out why a young female Navy Lieutenant has died. Pre-Hiatus, or Post-Hiatus if Gibbs comes back. ;)

* * *

**Chapter 1 - A Lonely Death**

Tony and McGee sat at their desks, glancing up curiously as Gibbs' phone rang. They looked at each other briefly, then shared a look of curiosity with Ziva, who had glanced over at them as she walked into the squad room and towards her desk.

"Gear up, guys. McGee, gas the truck." McGee stood up and reached out in one fluid motion, grabbing the keys from mid-air as he'd done so many times before.

"What have we got, Boss?" Tony asked, as he reached into his desk for his weapon.

"Body, looks like a female Navy Lieutenant. Neighbour reported her missing two days ago, but turns out, she's been home all along."

Ziva said nothing as she holstered her weapon as well, and followed McGee out.

* * *

"Oh, Man," Tony muttered, as they stood in Lt. Heidi Stanford's living room. He and McGee had their hands to their faces, wincing from the smell of death that seemed to permeate every inch of every object in the house.

On the couch, clutching a blanket in her death grip, was Lt. Stanford.

"I'm no medical examiner, but I'd say the COD is pretty obvious, wouldn't you Tony?" Tony looked at McGee, merely nodding.

"Her refrigerator has nothing but this," Ziva said, entering from the small doorway leading from the living room, into the kitchen. "Cans and cans of Ensure. Her garbage is very very ripe. With rotten vegetables."

"How can you tell?" Tony said, then immediately winced at his mouth getting ahead of his brain again. "McGee, slap me for that, will ya?"

Tim gave him a wry look. "No thanks. You'll slap back."

The three looked up as Gibbs entered the room with Ducky and Jimmy in tow. "Gentlemen, Ziva, what have we got here?" Ducky asked, strolling into the stifling room.

Jimmy set his bag down and reached inside for his liver temp thermometer. Crouching down next to the couch, he sighed sadly. "I can't imagine dying alone like this," he commented softly. Poking the thermometer into the side of the corpse, he shook his head. "Stone cold dead, Doctor. I don't think we're going to get an accurate TOD like this. She's clearly been dead too long for us to determine this way."

Ziva stood, fanning herself with her NCIS cap. "Is it just me, or is it really, _really_ hot in here?"

Tony was about to say something, but bit back the comment when he caught Gibbs' glare. McGee might hesitate to slap him upside the head upon request, but Gibbs sure as hell wouldn't think twice about it, and he wouldn't need an invitation, either.

"Well, Ziva, I would say, from the state of the body, that before she died, she was very likely feeling chilled most of the time. She probably had her thermostat set higher than normal. Which is another reason why we may have trouble determining an accurate TOD." He glanced at Jimmy, who sighed regretfully, replacing the thermometer back in the bag. "Well, Mr. Palmer, what are your initial observations?"

Jimmy scrutinized the wasted, emaciated woman before them, then one by one, gingerly took her lifeless hands in his, examining her fingernails and wrists, and then moved down to her legs and examined her ankles.

"No signs of restraint or struggle, no apparent defensive wounds. I doubt she was held captive and left to starve at any point." Jimmy glanced up at Ducky, seeking some kind of reaction, receiving only a small approving smile to carry on. He next examined her neck, still under Ducky's watchful eye.

"No obvious signs of strangulation, though it's a bit hard to tell in the state she's in." Next he opened her eyelids one at a time, shining his penlight into them.

"No petechial hemmoraging, so she probably wasn't smothered either." Next, he carefully propped her up, with barely-needed help from Ducky, checking underneath her clothing, at her back.

"Lividity marks are consistent with the cushions on this couch, and the bunched up blankets she was resting on, so she probably died here, in this position."

Ducky nodded, satisfied at his protégé's observations. "Very good, Mr. Palmer. Now, my boy, let's get her home. We know what didn't happen to her, now let's see if she can tell us what did, shall we?"


	2. Mounting Questions

**Chapter 2 - Mounting Questions**

"Dr. Mallard, would you come look at this please?" Jimmy Palmer stood in autopsy, examining what was left of Lt. Heidi Stanford. The young assistant M.E. seemed disturbed by something, or rather, the lack of something.

"How does her esophagus look to you?" Ducky gave his assistant an odd look, and then directed his gaze towards the area that the young man was pointing to.

"Perfectly healthy and normal, Mr. Palmer. I suppose that rules out bulimia. There were no signs of diet aids or laxatives in her bathroom, were there?"

Jimmy shook his head. "No, Doctor. Tony and Tim said the bathroom was full of vitamin supplements, ladies' toiletries… pretty much what you'd expect to see in a healthy single woman's bathroom. Nothing to indicate an eating disorder. In fact, Ziva also said that the kitchen cupboards were full of pasta, and other high carb items. Doesn't seem to fit the state she's in, does it?"

"Indeed, it doesn't, Mr. Palmer," Ducky said, as he sighed and returned to the autopsy.

* * *

"Lt. Heidi Stanford, 28 years old. She was on medical leave from active duty," McGee read from the folder in his hands. "She went on leave 6 weeks ago. She began to lose weight inexplicably, the doctors at Bethesda couldn't find any physical reason so they chalked it up to some kind of eating disorder and left it at that. Told her she needed help from a Navy psychologist."

Tony grunted in disgust at the incompetence of her doctor. "Yeah, sure. We didn't find any signs of an eating disorder, not bulimia anyway... And her kitchen was stocked with healthy food. She just wasn't eating any of it."

"It would appear that she was buying fresh vegetables, at least up until a short time before she died. Perhaps she simply didn't have the energy to cook them," Ziva suggested.

Gibbs nodded, taking in what his agents were telling him. "What else do we know about her, guys," he said, moving along. Tony and McGee exchanged glances, Tim cuing Tony to pick up where he'd left off. Tony read from a folder in his hands.

"She was single, had an active social life, had friends, but it looks like she quit going out when she went on medical leave. She lost contact with a lot of her friends, pretty much cut off contact with them. Her neighbour – the one who reported her missing, said she was a quiet young lady. They weren't well acquainted, but if they saw each other outside, they'd stop and chat for a few minutes. That's the thing, see, the neighbour, Mrs…" he trailed off, checking his folder, "Mrs. Younger, said that Lt. Stanford went out every morning for a run, up until about 2 months ago."

"Did she say anything about how Lt. Stanford seemed right before she stopped seeing her every morning?" Ziva shifted in her spot, crossing her arms and leaning back against the desk, perching on the edge.

Tony looked at McGee – Probie's turn to take the lead. "Mrs. Younger said that towards the end, Heidi, as she called her, seemed more tired, winded, almost, when she'd return from her run. Mrs. Younger is one of those older women who always think that the younger generation needs to take better care of themselves, so of course she noticed when the Lieutenant started to lose weight. She was a bit concerned, but also figured it wasn't her place to say anything. She's also one of those women who prefers to butt out of other people's affairs."

"So sad," Ziva commented with a sigh. "If only she'd stuck her nose in where it didn't belong, maybe Heidi Stanford would be alive right now."

"Maybe not, Ziva," Gibbs pointed out. "We still don't know why she died. It might have been out of Mrs. Younger's hands. Even the doctors at Bethesda didn't know what to make of it."

"Well, I wonder what _our_ Doctor makes of it?" McGee wondered. Gibbs shrugged, and led the way out of the squad room, and down to autopsy.


	3. Something Crazy

**Chapter 3 - Something Crazy**

"Got anything new for us, Duck?" Gibbs asked, as the group of agents breezed into autopsy.

The old Doctor looked up from the body, where he was observing Jimmy, who was busy utilizing the finer points that Ducky had taught him, of a flawlessly good stitch-up of the Y-incision.

"The best we can tell you is that she did not die from complications arising from bulimia. She most likely did not die from complications arising from anorexia, either. Nor did she die from excessive abuse from another person, or an intestinal parasitic infestation. She died from massive organ failure, brought on by severe and chronic malnutrition. Her heart simply gave out, Jethro."

"What we can't figure out is why she was even malnourished in the first place," Jimmy said, looking up from his task. "I mean, there are no signs of anything obvious, or unusual."

"Is it possible it was something she ate?" Tony was only half joking. "I mean, could she have been poisoned or something? Whatever it is that killed her, it isn't obvious."

"Oh…" Jimmy said, glancing at Ducky, a look of sudden comprehension in his eyes. "Tony, you're brilliant. Tim, remember that book you loaned to me last month?"

McGee gave Jimmy an odd look, then nodded as his green eyes lit up in recollection. "Yeah. I think I see where you're going with this." Gibbs, Ziva, Tony, and Ducky looked on, utterly confused.

"Well, enough with the cryptic geek-speak, guys," Tony finally said. "What are you thinking?"

"If I know Jimmy, he's thinking something crazy," McGee said, crossing his arms and giving his colleagues a satisfied grin.

"Dr. Mallard, we need to send blood samples and stomach content samples over to Abby for testing, as soon as possible," Jimmy said. Ducky cocked his head, smiling slightly, then the two morgue personnel got to work gathering the samples they needed.

"Well, are you gonna fill us in, or what?" Gibbs said, losing patience. "McGee, if Palmer isn't gonna spill it, you'd better talk fast."

"I think what Jimmy's thinking Boss, is that maybe Lt. Stanford was poisoned, like Tony suggested."

"Poisoned?" Gibbs seemed incredulous, but interested in the theory nonetheless. "With what?"

McGee sighed, thinking a moment, trying to figure out how to explain it in layman's terms. "Well Boss, there are certain toxins that block nutrient absorption… the seeds of the wild sweet pea, for example. It could explain why she had a kitchen full of food, I mean, maybe, she was trying to gain weight back, but no matter how much she ate, her body couldn't absorb the nutrients. She was starving to death with a house full of food. Maybe. It's just a theory right now."

"A good one, better than we've had sofar," Tony noted, nodding appreciatively. "Maybe that's why she had all those nutritional supplement drinks in the fridge. She was too weak to cook, but she knew she needed something beneficial. Boss, we need to go back to her house," he said.

Gibbs nodded, at Tony, waving his team out of the morgue. "I want every drop of beverage, every crumb of food, every pill, every damn stick of gum, brought back here and gone over with every test Abby and Ducky and Jimmy can think of."

* * *

"Hey, Abs," McGee greeted Abby, as he stepped into her lair. "Got anything yet?"

Abby gave him a playful glare. "Got anything yet, _please?_" he modified, with a sheepish expression. "Better," she teased. "But not quite there yet."

"Got anything yet, please, my beautiful Gothic Princess?"

"Bingo," she grinned at him, then waggled a finger to summon him over. "I found traces of a toxin in her system. You and Jimmy were right, she was being poisoned, and the toxin was blocking her body from absorbing nutrients. Now, I've narrowed it down to a particular plant. It grows in Alaska, it's the Hedysarum mackenzii."

McGee nodded. "Wild Sweet Pea."

"How did you guys know, anyway?" Abby asked, reaching for her Caf-Pow. McGee shrugged and grinned.

"A book we both read, once. But we never would have thought of that if Tony hadn't brought up the possibility that she was poisoned. Okay, so does this plant only grow in Alaska?"

Abby smiled at him as she wheeled her chair over to one of the computers. "It's native to Alaska. I suppose maybe it can be grown elsewhere… it _is_ a sweet pea, after all. A garden plant I suppose, as well?"

McGee nodded. "Thanks, Sweet Pea," he smiled, leaning over to give her a quick peck on the cheek. "I'll pass this on to the others. Now that we've confirmed what it is, we know what to look for."

Abby's grinning gaze followed him out as he left the lab. Then, her smile quickly faded, as she said, "Hey McGee, aren't you gonna help me test all this stuff from her house?"

McGee gave her a mischievous grin as the doors closed. "Maybe later, Abs. I've gotta work this from the squad room first."

Abby frowned and sagged slightly as she surveyed the tables full of pantry items, canned beverages, and over-the–counter pharmaceuticals. "Men. Get what they want and they're outta here," she muttered to herself.

* * *

"Abby's working on the stuff from Stanford's house," McGee said, as he strolled purposefully into the squad room, heading straight for his desk. "In the meantime, we need to check nurseries in the D.C. area that might have a certain wild sweet pea."

Tony looked over at him curiously. "Wild sweet pea?"

McGee nodded. "The toxin that Abby found in her system comes from a plant native to Alaska. But it's possible that it may have been brought south for use in gardens and landscaping. So we need to check the nurseries."

Gibbs walked in, coffee in hand. "What've you got, boys?"

"Abby confirmed the presence of a toxin in Heidi Stanford's system. Her stomach contents, to be precise. Tony was right on the money with that," McGee said, standing up and walking over to Gibbs' desk. Gibbs glanced approvingly at Tony as his Senior Agent grinned charmingly.

"Abby's got a pile of stuff to go through yet," McGee said, as he sat down at his desk. "So now we know Lt. Stanford was poisoned, and we know what she was poisoned with."

"All we're missing is means, motive, and a suspect," Tony said, thoughtfully, as he picked up his phone. "I'm calling the local nurseries," he said, as he started calling the numbers displayed on his computer screen, courtesy of a search engine.

Gibbs sat down at his desk, looking somewhere on the wrong side of grouchy – which, for Gibbs, wasn't an unusual state, by any stretch of the imagination. McGee glanced over at him, seeming to weigh the importance of what he had to say. Finally, he spoke.

"Boss, maybe we should go back to the Lieutenant's house. Take a look at the neighbouring yards, talk to them, see if they saw anyone unusual. That toxin had to get into her food supply somehow."

McGee swallowed slightly, not sure what to expect from their Boss. He was somewhat relieved when Gibbs nodded, saying, "Good thinking, McGee. Talk to that Mrs…" he paused, glancing at his file, "Mrs. Younger. She seems like a typical nosy old lady."

McGee nodded. "Boss, I've kind've had a feeling about her… like she knows more than she's telling us. I can't explain it, really." He glanced at Tony, who was busy writing things down as he talked on the phone.

Gibbs grinned briefly. "I can explain it, McGee. That's your gut talking. Grab Tony and Ziva and head over there."

McGee nodded, as Tony hung up his phone. "None of the local greenhouses carry that particular plant, they say it doesn't do well here, the climate's too warm for it. But they did say that it's possible that someone could have acquired the seeds and tried to cultivate them on their own."

"McGee, would you recognize that plant if you saw it?" Gibbs asked. McGee paused a moment, as Tony said, "I would, Boss. I think. I used a search engine to get the list of greenhouses. I also did a search on wild sweet peas."

McGee nodded at Tony, "Image search too?" Tony nodded affirmatively, holding up a printed copy of the picture he'd found. McGee nodded, satisfied. "I would, too, Boss. So would Palmer, for that matter," he added, choosing not to elaborate unnecessarily.

"Well, what're ya waiting for, an engraved invitation? Go, find Ziva and get yourselves back to Stanford's neighbourhood." Gibbs tried to hide a grin behind a crotchety glare as he nodded his agents out of the squad room.

"On it, Boss," McGee and Tony said in unison, as Ziva breezed back in.

Tony reached out, grasping her arm, and spun her around in a strange hurried dance. "You're with us, Zivsters," he said, as she glanced at him, confused. She looked up at McGee for explanation, but was only met with an angelic expression and an enigmatic smile.


	4. Scary Possibilities

**Chapter 4 - Scary Possibilities**

Abby looked up and smiled as Jimmy walked into the lab, carrying two evidence jars.

"We found this in the blankets she was wrapped in," he said, smiling only briefly in greeting, and handing over one of the jars. "I'm guessing it's from the pod of a wild sweet pea?"

Abby nodded at him, signing the offered clipboard to acknowledge receipt of the evidence. "Looks like you're right, Jimmy. Did you and Ducky find out anything else?" She studied the seed inside the jar as Jimmy paused a moment, and held out the second jar, containing a cotton swab.

"We did find some kind of powdery residue on her hands, this is a sample of it for analyses. She probably didn't even have the energy to get a glass of water, but Dr. Mallard thinks it might be some kind of medication or supplement, so someone was obviously in her house to care for her. What doesn't make sense is, why they didn't even bother to take her to Bethesda, or get her any kind of help at all."

Abby looked up at Jimmy, seeing his eyes darken slightly with anger, at whomever hadn't cared enough for this unfortunate young woman, to properly care for her when she so clearly needed urgent medical attention.

Abby took the second jar and studied it briefly but thoughtfully. "I've started testing on this mountain of pantry and medicine cabinet items. Whatcha doin' for the next week or so, Palmer?" she asked, hopefully.

Jimmy's expression slowly lightened once again, the darkness in his eyes retreating, and after a moment he grinned at her sweetly. "Ask Dr. Mallard. He's the one in charge of my parole," he said, with a small chuckle and a wink.

Abby shook her head and sighed with a dramatic air. "Oh, I see… too busy to help your old friend Abby… I see… yet another man who only sticks around until he gets what he wants."

She fluttered her eyelashes at him sadly, blinking back imaginary tears of sorrow, as he chuckled and shook his head. "I'm sure Tim will be back soon enough. Anyway, I do what I do best in autopsy, not the lab."

They both turned as one of her machines beeped. "Ah, we have a result. Stick around a minute, will ya Jims?" Abby summoned her to follow him with a waggling finger, and he obediently followed her lead towards the mass spectrometer. "Oh… interesting," she said, as she read the results. "Mmmm hmmm…" she continued, absorbed enough in her results that she had become almost completely oblivious to her companion's presence. Jimmy frowned, then leaned over her shoulder to take a peek.

"Damn," he muttered. "Who had access to that?"

"Only the entire staff at the drugstore she bought it at," Abby said with an exasperated sigh. "Not to mention, the warehouse, the factory… and anyone in between, and not even mentioning anyone who would have been in her house, or helped her with her shopping, or cared for her in any way. And who knows if this was a random attack, or specifically targeting her. If it did originate from the inventory in the store, and if it was random, who else could have been poisoned… God, Jimmy… the possibilities are damned scary… "

Jimmy nodded. "My point exactly. The pharmacy will have to pull their entire inventory of that product off their shelves, it'll all have to be brought back here for testing… I guess you'll be giving Gibbs a call right away," Jimmy said, as he waved at her and departed the lab.

"I guess I will be," she muttered to herself, as Jimmy turned, with a solemn and concerned expression on his boyish face.

"If you need a hand with that, let me know. I'm sure that between you and me, and Tim, we can get through all that in a reasonable amount of time. Time seems to have just become a pretty critical factor."

Abby nodded, thinking she really could use a fresh Caf-Pow right about now. "Thanks Jims, I'll keep that in mind, don't be surprised to find yourself back here," she said, as she picked up her phone to summon Gibbs, and fill him in on her findings.


	5. How does your evidence grow?

**Chapter 5 - How Does Your Evidence Grow?**

"What is this?" Tony asked, as he crouched down, studying something on the bath mat in the bathroom.

"Looks like dirt, or… garden soil?" McGee answered, as he crouched next to his older colleague. "Ziva, hand me a jar, please?" Ziva tore her attention away from the medicine cabinet long enough to reach into the bag for the requested item. Handing it to him, she turned back to her own task at hand, pulling out a swab.

"I think I may have something here, too," she said to the two men, as she took a sample, sealing it in a vial. She glanced down, finding her team mates studying the sample that McGee had just deposited in the jar. "What is that? Is that a shard of glass or something?"

Tony took the jar, scrutinizing it carefully. "Could be… Abby could tell us for sure, though. I bet that's garden soil though. It would be consistent with the origin of the toxin. If it came from someone's flower bed…"

McGee nodded at this. "I suggest we start at Mrs. Younger's place and work our way outwards?"

Tony sighed. "Agreed, Probie. I've got a feeling about that old bird, too."

"Four guts can't be wrong," Ziva noted, smiling briefly as Tony and McGee gave her an inquisitive look. "I too have a hinky feeling about her. Don't ask me to explain that. Abby never did fully define "hinky" for me." She winked as she dropped the sample into her bag. "Well boys, shall we?" she asked, leading the way out.

* * *

"Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your evidence grow…?" Tony said, as he stood, staring at Mrs. Younger's flower bed. "I think we have our weapon."

"Yeah," McGee agreed, crouching down and gently touching the delicate, silky petals. "But it's outside. Anyone could have access to it." He stood, not yet noticing the broken glass shards resting against the house.

Ziva stood silently, glancing around the well-kept yard. "She certainly seems a skilled gardener," she observed appreciatively. "I don't think I've ever seen a more beautiful flower garden. This must take a lot of time and effort."

Tony said nothing, looking around for other clues. "I think we need to get ourselves one big, fat, juicy search warrant before we do anything else. We're gonna need soil samples for comparison to what we found in Stanford's bathroom, and samples of this flower, see if it's consistent with the toxin in Stanford's system."

"Tony, is that what I think it is?" McGee stood with his flashlight trained on a glinting spot behind the flowers, as the broken glass finally decided to reveal itself.

The older agent moved over to where McGee was standing silently, staring intently at something. They were joined by Ziva as Tony nodded. "I think it is, McGee. Good eye. We need that search warrant, pronto."


	6. A Daunting Task Ahead

**Chapter 6 - A Daunting Task Ahead**

Gibbs hadn't sworn… much.

Abby had just had the distinct displeasure of informing him that they might have had a mass poisoning on their hands, depending on the nature of the attack on Heidi Stanford.

"Every jar, every case, every speck of that supplement powder has to be pulled from the shelves of every pharmacy in D.C.," she insisted. "I think I'm gonna need help with this. The sheer volume of samples for testing could take weeks. I'll need McGee for sure, probably Palmer and Ducky too."

Gibbs had frowned, scowled, glared, and utilized every unhappy expression he'd ever possessed over the years, at the distasteful news. The potential this situation held, for absolute screaming disaster, was nearly overwhelming.

"I'll get on that," he said unhappily, as he picked up the phone and started making the calls.

* * *

When the three field agents had returned to Mrs. Younger's property, warrant in hand, they were hardly surprised to see her friendly face greet them at the door. 

"What can I do for you young folk," she asked cordially, smiling warmly.

Tony cleared his throat. If ever there was a time for male charm, this could quite possibly be it.

"Mrs Younger," he said carefully, "we're going to have to take some samples from your yard. We think we've got a lead on why Heidi was so sick."

"Oh?" the older woman asked, sounding shocked and curious. Ziva levelled a steady, blank look at her. Something about this old woman had just raised her hackles, and she didn't like it in the least. She glanced up at McGee, who also held a steady, intent gaze in Mrs. Younger's direction. He glanced down at Ziva briefly, his eyebrow shooting upwards and then retreating back down again, in nearly the blink of an eye. Ziva understood – McGee didn't trust the woman either – something about her hospitality definitely did not ring true.

"Well, I suppose that would be alright… provided you young folk have a warrant," Mrs. Younger said, crossing her arms across her aproned front, a cold tone seeping into her voice.

The sudden change of tone alerted Tony and raised his hackles as well. "As a matter of fact, we do happen to have a warrant, Ma'am," he said, holding out his hand.

McGee reached into his inside jacket pocket and pulled out the requested paper. "I trust you'll be fully co-operative, Ma'am," he said, as he handed it over to Tony.

The old woman frowned, her friendly eyes darkening suddenly with something almost sinister. "Of course, young man," she said, coldly.

* * *

"My God, Abigail." 

Ducky stood next to Jimmy and Abby in the lab, staring at cases and cases of powdered dietary supplement. He glanced over at his young assistant. Jimmy Palmer held a sad look of resignation, and he truly looked as if he were bone-tired of the whole procedure before they'd even begun. Abby seemed to sense what he was thinking, as did Ducky. "I know, Jimmy. I guess, the sooner we get started, the sooner we get finished."

A heavy sigh was heard next to her, and she gazed up at Ducky, reaching up to pat the older man's face. "I know, Duckman. This really really bites. Okay, Jimmy, you take that pile over there, Ducky, you take the one on the other side, and I'll start in the middle and work my way out. McGee said he'd be here ASAP, but I think they've got a lead or something."

"Did he say as much, Abigail?" Ducky asked, hopefully. He watched as Jimmy hefted cases down from the top of his stack, for easier access. "Thank you Jimmy," he said, smiling briefly and gratefully. Jimmy nodded, still listening to Abby.

"No, actually, he didn't. He just sounded like… well, like he sounds when they're about to break a case." Abby shrugged.

"Well, maybe we won't have to go through all this after all, I mean, depending on what they've found, of course," Jimmy said, hopefully.

Ducky patted the younger man's arm. "From your lips to God's ears, my boy."


	7. A Bountiful Harvest of Answers

**Chapter 7 - A Bountiful Harvest of Answers**

"Boss, we're bringing Mrs. Younger in for questioning," Tony said as he hung on to the dashboard with one hand. "Ziva, watch out, this isn't NASCAR," he scolded, moving the phone briefly away from his ear. He glanced behind him, where Mrs. Younger had taken on a cold expression of stoicism. McGee didn't seem to notice how Ziva's driving was, however, his attention focused squarely on the deceptively fragile old woman next to him. He couldn't explain it exactly, but he didn't dare take his attention away from her.

"Did you collect any evidence, DiNozzo?" the terse reply came over the phone. Tony nodded, then said, "Yeah, Boss. We've got a few samples for testing."

"Good work," Gibbs said, and Tony shook his head slightly as he heard the line go dead.

* * *

Abby, Palmer, and Ducky all looked up as McGee, Tony, and Ziva breezed into the lab. McGee smiled sweetly at Abby as he handed over evidence bags with jars and vials with swabs.

"Oh, please tell us that might keep us from having to test all of this," Jimmy said, nearly desperate.

Abby's eyes grew wide in agreement. "What he said!" she said, gazing longingly at the bag.

"There's a chance that she could have spiked the supplement powder in Heidi's bathroom. That would mean that the stock from the pharmacies is untainted," Tony said, not without a great deal of relief.

"We have what appears to be soil from her bathroom," McGee said to her. "We also have soil samples from Mrs. Younger's flower beds. We have samples of what looks like a wild sweet pea from her garden, and we have glass shards, both from under one of her windows by the said flower bed, and also one we collected from the bathroom."

"I'll get on this right away," Abby gushed, rushing towards her tables with renewed enthusiasm.

"Abigail, may we take a break from this, then, my dear?" Ducky asked sweetly. He glanced at his young assistant, and the two men turned and gazed at Abby with pleading and adoring eyes.

"Yeah, go," she said giddily, waving them away. "With any luck, we may not have to test all of that after all."

Instead of getting out of Dodge, however, the two morgue personnel opted to stay in the lab, to watch Abby run her tests. Tony, Ziva, and McGee stayed as well, waiting patiently, until Tony judged it time for him to leave to question Mrs. Younger.

"That old lady is one seriously twisted twig," he said to Ziva, as they departed the lab together. Ziva turned a warm grin and a wink in Jimmy's direction as she left, prompting the young man to blush a deep shade of crimson, his eyes betraying his bashfulness with a glimmer of something that somehow, miraculously, managed to escape everyone else's notice.

McGee hung back, helping Abby to run the tests.

"Soil looks like a match. I've run a chemical analyses, and the mass spec breakdown matches in both samples. They're from the same place." Abby grinned triumphantly. "Now, that powder, we should have a result soon…"

* * *

"So, tell me Ma'am, how well did you know Lieutenant Stanford?" Gibbs asked casually.

"She was a trollup. Had her eyes on my Franky." Mrs. Younger crossed her arms and stared evenly at Gibbs.

Outside, McGee had just joined Ziva and Tony to observe through the one-way glass.

"Um… hasn't her husband been dead since…" Tim started to ask, when Tony replied, without allowing him to finish,

"1991, McGee. Like I said, she's a seriously…" he started, when Tim got his revenge.

"Twisted twig. No kidding?" Tony and Tim shared a look of silent agreement. Ziva simply blinked. Perhaps someday she'd also be able to finish her colleagues sentences for them. In the meantime, she supposed, she'd have to settle for mangling their favourite phrases, just to make sure they were actually listening to her.

The Officer and the two gentlemen returned their attention to the interview in progress on the other side of the glass.

"Ma'am, why would you say that Miss Stanford is a trollup?" Gibbs was having a suspicion that if Mrs. Younger wasn't missing a few bulbs from her string of Christmas lights, she was one clever old woman.

"I admit, my Franky has always had somewhat of a roving eye, and he's quite the catch, but he's never taken it so far as to be unfaithful. But that little… that little… _tramp_ was just determined to make him stray away from me."

"Have you any evidence of this?" Gibbs asked carefully. Mrs. Younger huffed at this.

"Of course I do. Why, the way she parades in front of my house every single morning wearing practically nothing at all. She's obviously a woman of rather loose morals. And when it became clear to her that she couldn't have my husband, she turned her sights on my son."

Outside the room, the three team mates looked at each other.

They had all reviewed the file that McGee and Tony had compiled. Mrs. Younger's son had been killed in Desert Storm, only a few months before his father had passed away at home, in the States. Of the Younger family, only Mrs. Younger and her daughter Melanie remained.

"This woman needs some serious help," Ziva said, shaking her head.

Gibbs, in the meantime, was still attempting to piece together a motive, and was coming dangerously close to it.

"I fixed her, that's what. She was so vain, so full of herself, flaunting that little body all the time in front of my son. So I fixed it. I took the perfect little figure away. She had no idea, either. Such a shameful little whore, she was." Mrs. Younger showed absolutely no signs of remorse, or any sort of emotion at all, for that matter.

Gibbs sat back, thinking. Finally, he closed the file folder in front of him, and stood up. "Mrs. Younger, I'll have one of my people escort you to the hospital. As a part of this investigation, I'm requesting that a full psychiatric examination be carried out. Just to make sure you're feeling okay, of course. You've made some pretty serious admissions here."

"I'm perfectly fine, young man," the old woman stated. She sat up a little straighter, and looked up at Gibbs, staring into his blue eyes, before moving to stand up as well. "Now, if you will kindly excuse me, I have to go home and make dinner for my husband. He doesn't like it when dinner is late. He puts in a full day's work and it's only right that he have a hot meal waiting for him when he gets home."

"I'm afraid I can't let you go home just yet, Ma'am," Gibbs said gently. He turned and looked towards the window, not seeing his team behind the glass, but nevertheless knowing that they were there. He nodded once, and Tony took the cue.

Mrs. Younger looked up, startled, when the door opened, and Tony appeared. "If you'll come with me, Ma'am, we can get this over with quickly." The old woman glared at him, but wisely, didn't argue, as she allowed him to lead her out the door.


	8. Delusions and Deflections

**Chapter 8 - Delusions and Deflections**

Ziva, Ducky and Jimmy stood outside interrogation, engaged in casual and playful banter. Their words were obscured from a distance, by casual laughter and feminine giggling from Ziva. Ducky stood gazing at Ziva in the paternal way he had with her and the others, and Jimmy grinned at her warmly with his familiar bright smile and sparkling green eyes.

Mrs. Younger glared in their direction, suddenly noticing the trio and their playful interactions.

Tony barely made out what she said when she muttered, "Franky. You bastard." He was caught totally off guard when she suddenly broke free from his gentle but clearly not quite firm enough grip on her arm, lunging towards Ziva.

"You shameful little whore!" the old woman screamed, just as Ziva had finished smiling playfully up at Jimmy and chucking him under the chin. Ducky had his hand on her back, giving it a friendly pat as he was about to turn to leave and return to business as usual in autopsy.

"First my husband, and now my son too, at the same time, no less! Tramp! Joseph RyanYounger, you should be ashamed of yourself!" she screamed at Jimmy.

The three shocked NCIS personnel barely managed to dodge out of the way of the charging elderly woman, as she came at Ziva swinging.

Tony drew his weapon instinctively, even as his second thoughts told him that this was an elderly woman and definitely was overkill. And anyway, if ever he'd known a woman who could defend herself, it was Ziva David.

Ducky managed to dodge out of the way while Jimmy made a protective lunge in Ziva's direction, catching Mrs. Younger by the arm. Ziva muffled a scream of surprise as her instincts took over and she quickly and easily deflected her attempted blows, while giving Tony enough time to arrive at their side.

"I'm sorry Ma'am, but I'm afraid that little display will necessitate my using the pretty silver bracelets on you," Tony said, as Jimmy and Ziva struggled briefly to secure their grip on the old woman. "Ziva, are you okay?" he asked, concerned.

Ziva straightened her outfit, shook her head slightly to set her hair to rights again, and nodded. "Of course Tony. I'm fine."

"Jimmy, what about you?" Tony asked, as he clicked the handcuffs closed around Mrs. Younger's wrists.

Jimmy took a deep breath and nodded. "I'm okay, Tony. No harm, no foul. I'm stronger than I look."

Ducky chuckled at this, knowing from watching his young assistant move bodies around in autopsy, that he wasn't just whistling Dixie with that statement. His blue eyes sparkled slightly as he gave Jimmy a subtle visual once-over, just to make sure that he really was okay – and not just whistling Dixie about that, either.

"This way, Ma'am," Tony said, his voice sounding tight. "I'll talk to you guys when I get back," he said over his shoulder as he and his elderly charge vanished around the corner.


	9. Good News and Bad

**Chapter 9 - Good News and Bad**

"Good news and bad news, guys," Abby said, when Tony had finally returned from transporting his prisoner to the hospital, and the team had reassembled in the lab. She looked around, noting the presence of both Ducky and Jimmy. They had seen first hand and knew all too well what Heidi Stanford's last days had been like. They wanted to know why this young woman with so much to live for had died so unnecessarily, as well.

"Which do you want first?" Abby said. She crossed her arms, frowning only when Gibbs glared at her. "Right," she said.

"The good news is, the supplement powder found in Lt. Stanford's bathroom tests positive for the toxin found in the wild sweet pea. That particular toxin matches the other substances recovered from her bathroom, and they match the pods recovered from the blanket the body was in. The pods in turn are also a positive match for the plants found in the old twig's flower garden." Abby paused for effect, waiting for the obvious questions to be asked.

"Abs, how the hell is that good news?"

Ah, she could always count on Gibbs to cut to the chase.

"Well, my silver haired fox, it's good news because it means that this wasn't an attempted mass poisoning by some random stranger." Abby paused, a sadness suddenly passing over her expressive green eyes.

"So then, what's the bad news?" Tim asked, softly. He recognized that sad look.

"Well Timmy, the bad news is, this was a deliberate act, geared specifically towards Lt. Stanford. No question it's first degree murder."

"Can she plead insanity?" Jimmy asked, suddenly. Until that point, he and Ducky had stood, listening to Abby's report in stunned silence.

Ducky answered that for him. "Unfortunately Mr. Palmer, yes, I believe she can. Clearly the woman is delusional. She believes that her husband and son are still alive, for heaven's sake, and they've both been dead since you were a lad in secondary school."

"How do we know she isn't faking it?" Tony asked. He looked around. Tim had raised an eyebrow at the validity of the question, and Ziva turned her head slightly in agreement with the junior agent. Abby sighed softly, while Ducky and Jimmy shared a regretful look.

"We don't know, Tony," Gibbs said. "That's what the psych evaluation is for. Of course, if she's crafty enough, she can fake her way through that."

"And if she isn't faking it, she gets of on an insanity plea. If she _is_ faking it… she may get off on an insanity plea, if her charade isn't discovered." Timothy McGee sounded very displeased at the notion.

"Well, her daughter is on her way from Boulder. She should be here tomorrow. In the meantime, we've done all we can. Good work, guys," Gibbs said, as he turned to leave. "And Abby, clean up this mess, will ya? No more Caf-Pow's until these cases of that powder health food crackpot crap have been cleared away."

"Aw, but Giiiiiibbs…" Abby whined. "You know I can't work without my jet fuel!"

"Aw, don't worry Sweet Pea," Tim said soothingly. "We'll help you with this, just as soon as the paperwork is done on this case," he grinned mischievously, as he turned to leave the lab.

"Aw, come on, Timmy. Have a heart!" she pleaded. She turned her green doe eyes towards Jimmy and Ducky.

"I'm sorry Abby, but this is a hernia waiting to happen. At my age, you know…" he said, as he quickly shuffled towards the door.

"But, Duckman!" she protested. She promptly turned to Jimmy. "You'll stay, won't you Jims?" She fluttered her eyelashes at the tall young man.

"Only because you can hurt me and not leave any evidence," he said, as he turned to shift the nearest case out of the way. He grinned over at her as she glared at him, frowning. "I'm kidding, Abby," he laughed. "Come on, Ziva. The sooner we get this done, the sooner Abby gets her happy place. You've seen her cranky, haven't you?"

Ziva smiled and nodded. "Yes, James. I have seen her very very cranky. It is not an experience I wish to repeat anytime soon. Anyway, I happen to know that Tim had most of the paperwork on this case done already, while Tony was at the hospital with Mrs. Younger. They shouldn't be long. And if we're lucky, Tony will order a couple of pizzas for dinner."

"Good," Abby said, as she tried not to grunt from the effort of moving two cases at once. "I'm absolutely _starving_."


End file.
